Najhil Holken
The naked Truth is always better than the best-dressed Lie. Najhil Holken is a female raloi (originally believing herself to be male) who formally worked at Broken Ground, Hansa'Tel's greenhouse, and now works at a café in the Va'liat Center in Tayseri Ward. She posted on CDN first as "Twisted Logic" and later as "Rhapsody in Taupe". Biography Turvess Born in a small, theocratic country on Turvess, Najhil, then called Krot, was castrated at birth because she was a bastard child. For the first few years of her live, she lived in a brutal "nursery." The only speaking allowed was responses to orderlies, so she never developed important social skills. She was never told her birth date, nor her gender (raloi reproductive physiology being internal, she couldn't check for herself). At about the age of six, she managed to sneak out of the nursery, and made her way to the nearby capital city, where she lived for many years as a street urchin and did many things that she now regrets. At some point during this time, she became literate by eavesdropping on primary school lessons, after which she became a voracious reader. Her first real friend was a student named Senbud, who became a "pen-pal" of sorts. In her readings, she learned of a philosopher called Jharkul, who preached truth, tolerance, and equality. Due to her naïve, child-like understanding of the world, she took these teachings to absurd extremes. With Jharkul's book in hand, Najhil began preaching truth and the evils of the regime on the streets to whomever would listen, which landed her in prison. She lived in prison until soon after raloi first contact, when she began speaking out again, this time about mistreatment of prisoners. This ensured a riot which caused the government to banish her outright. Seizing the opportunity, Najhil requested that she be part of the raloi delegation to the Citadel, never to return to Turvess again. The Galaxy at Large Soon after arriving on the Citadel, "he" discovered the CDN boards, which became a sort of focal point for "his" life. Through CDN, "he" made friends, learned of alien cultures, and learned how to be a part of contemporary society. Eventually, however, "he" grew restless, and left the Citadel for many months, first going to Illium, then Proteus, and Omega, eventually taking the Bangalore ''back to the Citadel. Here, "he" was taken in by a krogan living illegally on the station named Urdnot Nutanx. At Tanx's apartment, "he" met the man "he" would fall deeply in love with: Kema'Holken nar Herring. Unfortunately, during a visit to Omega, Kema was brutally murdered. This blow, more than any other in her life, permanently damaged Najhil's psyche. Soon after Kema's death, Najhil learned of an experiment being conducted by Binary Helix, one that, if successful, unlocked the door to cloning and reattaching "his" genitalia. "He" was enthralled with the idea of actually being male (which is what she thought her genetic sex was). The operation was as success; Najhil now had a fully functioning set of (unknown to her) ovaries, and "he" adopted the name "Jharkul", after the philosopher that inspired "him" so many years ago. But, lo and behold, one biological cycle later, she laid an unfertilized egg. Realizing her mistake, Najhil took on her current name. Though a late bloomer, Najhil has now started puberty at the tender age of 17, and has all the problems that go with it. Eventually, having lived off of the kindness of other for too long, Najhil decided to get a job. She found employment at the Broken Grounds greenhouse, run by the quarian botanist Hansa'Tel. Using the money she earned here, she started going to night classes, and is currently in remedial mathematics and Hierarchy Standard classes. Though still mourning, her hormones still managed to get the better of her fairly quickly, as she started to look at men, especially quarians and turians, in a new light. The majority of this attention soon became focused on a young quarian named Kenec'Getha nar Iblin, who became her boyfriend. Physical Appearance Short, only about 5'1". Brown-grey feathers, and a just-appearing set of hips. Her envirosuit was a dull, grey colour, but is now dark violet. When she wears it, she also wears a tattered, mismatched hood meant for female quarians. Trivia Najhil will eat just about anything (except noodles, which she insists are weird). Her favourites are beetles, fish, and chili peppers. Najhil is apparently rather poor at discerning spicy flavours, since she doesn't understand the different heat levels on batarian snack food packaging. The headaches of discussing food while being raloi are evident here. On her Religion: ''"The Church provides a Sense of Community that Najhil had been missing in Najhil's Life. While not quite the same Feeling, Najhil has not had Friends (at least off the Extranet) since before the War. The Sermons are also nice." Relationships * Flower Wilde: Even having only met her in person once, Najhil considered her to be something of a younger sister. * Hansa'Tel: Najhil's former employer. Whenever Hansa returns to CDN, as she does periodically, Najhil greets her warmly. * Kema'Holken nar Herring: Najhil's former boyfriend, brutally murdered by a batarian called Kangarm. *Kenec'Getha nar Iblin: Najhil's former boyfriend. * Neil DeVore: Once one of Najhil's closest friends and confidantes. * Thel'Adean vas Tinketta: A good friend of Najhil. * Urdnot Nutanx: Najhil's once roommate and close friend. Post-war, with many of these people having moved on, Najhil has admitted to being very lonely. Her religious faith and her newly acquired Lesussian Stonedrinker provide most of her emotional security these days. Threads of Note Twisted Logic Apologises: An awkward post from the raloi as "he" moves on to a new job. Twisted Logic Has Made A Friend!: The sort of friend that wants you to carry packages to Illium, no questions asked. The Traveller: Our raloi hero has carried the package to Illium, and now needs to get it to Proteus, because that's where intended recipient Suri'Neyvi vas Rosenkreuz has moved to. Since Maximillian van der Trask, who owns Proteus, is a friend of John Briggs, perhaps the bombastic human can assist? Suri's Day Out: Our raloi finally manages to track down Suri, on Omega. Similar Names: An early running gag of the board, in which "Twisted Logic" is insisted to be a fearsome and merciless force. Off To Turvess?: A former cellmate is trying to get in contact and wants "Krot" to return to the Citadel. What should "he" do? Big News: Now a Citadel citizen! Movie Night: Kenec'Getha nar Iblin hosts a night of cinema. You Don't Turn 700 Every Day: Najhil and Kenec attend a birthday celebration for Mirala T'Narf. By the end, Najhil is drunk. Bye, Bye, HS: Najhil meekly attends a going-away party for Hierarchy dad (Juhani Alavirta). Reaper War Kenec sends a message to Najhil and Hansa. Najhil's response follows in the next post. Filling A Void: Najhil welcomes Naaya to her home. Private Messages: An offer for Najhil to join Naaya. A Chance to Atone, followed by Refugee Retrieval: Najhil joins a group of other CDN regulars to provide wartime aid, evacuating the needy from Eden Prime. Reasons to be Happy: Najhil, Hansa, Kolya Wright, and Kaneel'Jorash nar Sombrei share some time together at Broken Ground, in the aftermath of the Cerberus Coup and the reclamation of Rannoch. A Brief Respite followed by Pianeta Dei Morti: The do-gooders have another job. Intermezzo: Heading to Earth, as the war nears its end. Post War How The Mighty Have Fallen: Najhil's new job offers an opportunity to help a young woman in need. Quicksilver Palace: A trip on a relaxing cruise ship. Najhil meets a drunken Ket'Etal, most memorably. Back From the Dead: Najhil attends a night out with CDN fellows at Aphin's Place. Possession?: Najhil's input proves useful when a strange arrival starts bringing up names from the earliest days of CDN. Najhil gets a new pet: Najhil's cleric has a new responsibility for her. Raloi Troubles: Najhil expands on some of the inconveniences of not having anything on the Citadel designed for raloi. Social Standing: In the thread by Chak Zi'Kratarg, Najhil lists the traits in her favour. They All Look The Same: A brief discussion with Emile and Dani about telling aliens apart. Party Time: Another CDN get-together, at a Halloween party on Illium. Questionnaire: Najhil answers some personal questions. Category:Characters Category:Raloi